It's Giving Tuesday! Would you consider a donation to our church's nonprofit organization (newcommunityoutreach.org) as we create restorative spaces for healing, reconciliation and flourishing in our community? Give here: tinyurl.com/NCOGivingTue...

Let it snow!

Looking for the perfect gift? We have a limited # of deeply discounted tickets to the Communities of Flourishing Conference. Join us as we move from critique to action! @skyejethani.bsky.social @malcolmbfoley.bsky.social @davidwswanson.bsky.social @fullerseminary.bsky.social @erbks.bsky.social

Our contributions to the table this year. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

How about it? We can stay away from these three authoritarian-adjacent corporations for a few days, right? We can invest our dollars in local Black and Brown businesses, right? Learn more here: weaintbuyingit.com

"Here we are, daring to say that even in a bruised and burdened world, God has not ceased to be faithful. Here we are, daring to believe that giving thanks is not naïve optimism but a persistent practice by which we remember who God is." - @richtywil.bsky.social substack.com/home/post/p-...

"Of these 5,373 [detained by ICE since the government shutdown], there was a net increase of 5,209 more individuals with no criminal history – some 97 percent of the total net increase. Only 3 percent had a criminal conviction even including minor traffic offenses." tracreports.org/reports/767/

"When Christians here in Chicago protest the government’s cruel deportation campaign, whether gathering for a prayer vigil or wading through tear gas-choked streets, we are looking for Jesus." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

Preachers, what's the passage of Scripture and main point of your sermon this week? I'll be in Revelation 3:14-22, "We refuse the deceptions of wealth by trusting Jesus."

"It was a triumph of men who in their effort to replace equality with caste and to build inordinate wealth on a foundation of abject poverty have succeeded in killing democracy." - W.E.B. Du Bois, Black Reconstruction in America (1935)

On state-sanctioned violence justified by state-sponsored lies.

"It was a triumph of men who in their effort to replace equality with caste and to build inordinate wealth on a foundation of abject poverty have succeeded in killing democracy." - W.E.B. Du Bois, Black Reconstruction in America (1935)

Friends in the western suburbs, I'd love to see you this Wednesday evening at Wheaton College. (Contrary to the flier, I'm not a Dr. but I'll still do my best to make it interesting.)

While our circumstances will shape the tenor and content of our dissent, they don’t have the power to shut our protest down. buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

A autumn morning walk through Jackson Park.

As Chicago suffers state-sanctioned terror, the Christians who once were so vocal have become strangely silent.

Heartbreaking to watch the state police again refuse entry by clergy to those held at Broadview. Denying pastoral care is another example of the cruelty inflicted on our neighbors. Even so, it was encouraging to be joined by colleagues for the interfaith prayer service.

The Faith Over Fear interfaith coalition has been a source of courage and wisdom during the federal government's cruel operations in Chicago. Join us on Friday at Broadview as we raise voices and songs in solidarity with our detained neighbors. Register here: secure.everyaction.com/tU_DXaMsTEOC...

White people receive SNAP more than any other group. But that fact didn't stop Fox News from running AI-generated videos of Black women complaining about cuts to their benefits. It's an old strategy– inflaming white racism so that the majority suffers while the wealthiest add to their loot.

From the conclusion of yesterday's sermon from Revelation 2:18:-19, "Hold Fast to Jesus." podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/n...

Yesterday we gathered to prayerfully proclaim God's protection over our vulnerable neighbors in Little Village. As we gather in worship this morning, may our allegiance to the Lord Jesus lead us into solidarity with every sibling suffering under the threat of state-sponsored violence.

Hey preacher friends, what's the passage and theme for your sermon tomorrow? I'm preaching from Revelation 2:18-29, "Hold Fast to Jesus."

I talked with a friend who is preparing for the loss of SNAP. She's incredibly diligent– works a full-time job and two side-hustles. She's thrifty, lives modestly, yet without this assistance she's in trouble. It's not personal laziness behind my friend's need; it's societal greed.

Excellent thoughts on why U.S. Christians ought to be paying attention to what's happening with SNAP right now.

Our church is hosting a workshop with our friends from Ecuador early next month. This is a great opportunity to learn about grassroots community development from a global perspective and I'd love for you to be my guest. Register (for free!) here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

From the conclusion of today's sermon from Revelation 2:12-17, "Both/And Faithfulness."

The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their refuge in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and rescues them; he rescues them from the wicked and saves them because they take refuge in him. (Psalm 37:39-40)

Hey preachers, what's the passage and theme for your sermon this week? I'm coming from Revelation 2:12-17, "Faithfulness to Jesus connects public witness and personal devotion."

Christians will continue to publicly and precisely identify the white supremacist rhetoric and policies of the Trump / MAGA movement as what they are– deceitful and dangerous attacks on image-bearers of the Creator God.

"Can you fulfill your responsibilities without violating Jesus’ teachings? If not, could it be that your loyalty to Jesus calls you to walk away?" Thank you to Christians for Social Action for publishing my appeal to ICE agents who share my faith. christiansforsocialaction.org/resource/app...

"Can you fulfill your responsibilities without violating Jesus’ teachings? If not, could it be that your loyalty to Jesus calls you to walk away?" Thank you to Christians for Social Action for publishing my appeal to ICE agents who share my faith. christiansforsocialaction.org/resource/app...

An email from my son's principal alerting us to the presence of ICE. Driving to the school, scanning vehicles which might conceal masked men waiting to abduct someone's child. Lamenting with the psalmist, "Why do the wicked renounce God and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?

While it's been disheartening to watch the rapid ascent of Christian nationalism to the highest levels of our federal government, it is also an opportunity to boldly proclaim and demonstrate the holistic gospel of Jesus Christ. 1/

From the conclusion of yesterday's sermon from Revelation 1:1-7, "Love Powers Endurance."

Preachers, what's the passage and big idea for your sermon this morning? I'll be in Revelation 2:1-7, "Endurance is powered by love."

"Though I walk in the midst of trouble,     you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies; you stretch out your hand,     and your right hand delivers me. The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;     your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever." - Psalm 138:7-8

In the original caption, the AP insinuated that I'd been arrested while peacefully observing the protests with other faith leaders at the ICE facility in Broadview on Friday. While I'm grateful they've since clarified, I'd like to offer the following alternative caption: apnews.com/article/chic...

Along with other faith communities around Chicago, this morning New Community Covenant Church shared the message that, despite the federal government's cruel attacks against our neighbors, we are choosing faith over fear! A huge thanks to our kids for prepping the sign during my sermon.

“Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last and the Living One. I was dead, and see, I am alive forever and ever, and I have the keys of Death and of Hades." - Revelation 1:17-18

The president, speaking at Charlie Kirk's memorial, said, "I hate my opponent, and I don’t want the best for them," and we'd better believe him. But don't picture the Democratic party, the never-Trumpers, or the courts opposing his authoritarian tactics when you imagine the president's opponents. 1/

Lord Jesus, give every Chicago pastor the courage to step into their pulpits tomorrow and proclaim to their people, "There is STILL a word of God for the people of God."

"They had the Black people in one van, and the immigrants in another van." -South Shore “You’re a fool if you ever thought that was gonna happen or they’d walk past a bunch of Black people and not bother us.” -East Garfield Park --- abc7chicago.com/post/ice-chi... thetriibe.com/2025/10/vide...

It's easy to look away from someone else's suffering. It's natural to allow fear to keep us from doing what is right. But Christians, formed in the cruciform love of Jesus, won't let ignorance or cowardice steal the joyful obligation of loving our neighbors.

The Supreme Court has allowed the presidential administration to add overt racial profiling to their terrorizing tactics. It's being deployed against Chicago immigrants but you'd better believe it will be expanded to other places and groups of people. --- Source: chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/...

"I can’t be the only one who finds it disorienting having to so regularly justify justice." buttondown.com/david.w.swan...

I deeply grieve the evangelism of white christian nationalism which draws its converts into a kingdom of domination, fear, and enemy-making. May the gospel we proclaim alert our neighbors to Jesus' kingdom of grace, justice, and peace.

I deeply grieve the evangelism of white christian nationalism which draws its converts into a kingdom of domination, fear, and enemy-making. May the gospel we proclaim alert our neighbors to Jesus' kingdom of grace, justice, and peace.

Would love for you to join us!

Blasphemy! Debasing Jesus' prayer for provision, forgiveness, and deliverance for the empire's purposes of domination, destruction, and death. What sort of a lifeless idol do these wolves in sheep's clothing think they are messing with? --- Original post: www.facebook.com/share/r/1BHi...

Yes, there are still Christian martyrs, women and men who are killed for their allegiance to the Lord Jesus. But those of us in the US will need to look beyond our borders to honor their witness. www.newsweek.com/christians-k...